Service, Justice & Ministry Partners
Click HERE to see current editions of the monthly Service & Justice newsletters
Fall Grounds Clean-up
Saturday, October 25, 9:00-11:30am REGISTER
It's time to clear out the gardens and prepare our grounds for the long winter! Projects include: trimming, pulling & raking. If you have gloves or rakes please bring them. Come for as long as you can!
If you have more questions please contact Lou Hernandez, Properties Chair
Snow Shovelers Needed
Pick 2-3 weekends during the snow season to be on-call and make sure sidewalks are cleared for weekend worship. Snowblower provided! Sign-up for your weekends HERE.
Annual Coat Drive
20th year collecting coats & items of warmth!
We will be collecting new and gently used coats, sweatshirts, socks, gloves, hats, boots and sleeping bags to keep our neighbors warm this winter! All donations can be dropped off at Immanuel October 12-November 9 and will be distributed to the community by our partners at Humanity Alliance. Financial donations also welcomed.
Humanity Alliance Food Pack Event
Help prepare food for families in need
Monday, November 17, 5-7pm in Victoria (REGISTER)
The Humanity Alliance prepares and delivers thousands of meals each week to families in need. Most of the families are in Carver or Hennepin county, however some are in other areas also. Adults and youth can come to help prepare food. Immanuel confirmation students as well as adults have volunteered in the past, and found it to be rewarding and fun!
Volunteers can either carpool (meet at 4:30 pm in the Immanuel parking lot) or to meet at the Humanity Alliance in Victoria (arrive before 5 pm).
Read more about the Humanity Alliance. Contact Ruth at lundeworld@yahoo.com if you have questions.
Current Ministry Partner Visits
Here at Immanuel, we are blessed with some incredible congregational partners and continuing into the fall on the first Sunday of each month, we invite you to join Deacon Savannah in attending worship with each of them! See the schedule below and sign up HERE!
- November 2- Redeemer Lutheran (worship starts at 10:30am, carpool 9am)
- November 2- Cristo Obrero (Dia de los Muertos Service starts at 4pm, carpool 3:15pm)
- December 7- All Nations Indian Church (worship starts at 11am and coffee hour at 10am, carpool 10am)
- December 21- Cristo Obrero (Las Posadas Service starts at 4pm, carpool 3:15pm)
Game Night at Immanuel Lutheran Church!
Date: Saturday, November 1, 2025
Time: 4-8pm
Benefits: Cristo Obrero
Location: Immanuel Lutheran Church
What: Come join us for night of game along with Trunk or Treat! We will have games of all sorts- card games, board games and yard games (weather permitting)! Come play your favorite games with new friends or try out a game you’ve never played before. There will be options for all ages.
Food: Hot dogs & chips, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Lions beer truck
Cost: Your support makes a difference, contribute what you can!
Registration not necessary.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Sign-up HERE!
Contact: Deacon Savannah Olaphson
Anna’s Craft Sale for Onward!
Anna’s Craft Sale is back, but this year it will be organized by Anna’s sister, Ellie! Starting in elementary school, Anna Brackett started hosting an annual craft sale raising money to support families experiencing homelessness in our community. Now that Anna is off at college, Ellie Brackett is taking over and this year she has chosen Onward Eden Prairie as the recipient of all the funds raised in the sale! So, mark your calendars for November 15th and 16th (before and after all worship services) to come shop for handmade craft items (perfect for the holidays) and to support our partners at Onward! We will also be collecting craft donations starting October 1st (items can be dropped off in Deacon Savannah’s office).
Habitat for Humanity
Volunteer for Habitat for Humanity Project
NEXT WORK DAY: Saturday, December 13, 2025, 8:30am-3:30pm in Chanhassen (REGISTER)
Choose from ONE of the following jobs:
- Construction team
- lunch for the workers
- photography
No experience required. Minimum age 16 for construction volunteers. Not only do we build a home, we build community, putting our faith into action. Come join us and help make the dream of home ownership a reality. If you are interested please contact Ruth Lunde or Lynn Swanson at 952.974.1689.
Little Dresses for Africa
Humanitarian relief to the most vulnerable of God’s children
If you can do basic sewing, we have a perfect project for you! Pillowcase dresses, made by volunteers from around the world, go out as little ambassadors to plant in the hearts of little girls that they are worthy. As relationships are built, projects are completed through clean water, education and community. Premade kits are available to make six pillowcase dresses. Pick up a kit in the atrium at Immanuel. Donations of pillowcases, rickrack, bias tape and thread are also welcome. For more information contact Ilene McCluskey 952-941-8471.
Our Immigrant Neighbors
Update from the Service & Justice Committee
We, your Immanuel Service & Justice Team, share your concerns about our neighbors who are immigrants. We are following our partners’ leads and accompanying them in short- and long-term efforts they indicate are useful. Please call Immanuel’s office (952-937-8123) to volunteer as a notary, lawyer (especially with immigration experience), Spanish-speaker and/or copying assistant. We also anticipate fundraising events with our partners. The Team also is using guidance and resources from:
- Global Refuge (formerly Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service [LIRS])
- ELCA’s AMMPARO Migrant Ministry (including their Facebook posts)
- Lutheran Social Service’s Refugee Services
We will update you as we receive additional information. If you know someone who is seeking immigration information, please contact us. You can help by supporting local businesses, including restaurants, owned and/or operated by folks who are immigrants. They may be struggling because their usual customers are staying home out of fear.
Minneapolis Area Synod Resources
In recent weeks, our synod office has received requests for resources and information about immigration, ICE enforcement, and support for immigrant communities. They have compiled a webpage in English and Espanol with pastoral messages, trainings, resources, articles, and other helpful links related to the recent executive orders and the impact they have on those in our communities. If you have resources to share, please send to Nicholas Tangen.
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Truth & Healing Group
During the past year the ELCA has initiated the “Truth & Healing Movement” as an intentional opportunity for the church to increase it’s understanding of our colonizing impacts on Indigenous people in the past and present. The movement is focused on providing opportunities to learn the true, and largely ignored, history and current realities of Indigenous people with the hope that by listening and learning, these truths will bring healing for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike.
At Immanuel, we have decided to start a group committed to this work within our own context here in Eden Prairie and in Minnesota. We will be meeting monthly over the course of the next 9-12 months to learn together and to form our own action plans for how we might be better neighbors- following the guidance of Native Governance Center. Learn more!
Have an Hour or Two?
Become an on-call servant!
We know your life is busy but we also know you have a heart for helping others. We can help! Immanuel often has opportunities to assist with projects that require a very limited time commitment. Consider joining our On-Call Servant email list! When a need arises we will send an email and if you are available to help, let us know. It's that easy! Send an email to Sarah (sarah@immanuel.us) in the office and you will be added to the distribution list.
Diaper Squad
Support our partner Redeemer Lutheran as they help with a food shelf in their neighborhood. Donations ofbaby wipes and diapers of all sizes are needed - these items are in high demand for families accessing food shelves. Volunteers are needed to deliver diapers to N. Minneapolis the first Saturday of the month.
A member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.